Name
by The Sweetalker
Summary: Something a little different. By the time you finish reading the first chapter, you will probably be able to guess who it is about. Ch. 4 now in: "Adversary"
1. Lost Daughter

She wasn't at all worried when the men took Momma away from her bed. It was common to hear, especially in the nighttime, just before the terrabugs started creaking their moon songs and lulling her to sleep. One pair of heavy footsteps, then two pairs -- or maybe more -- leaving a few minutes later. An "arrangement", Momma called it. She would return before the dawn, as she always did.

It wasn't until long after the sun had set upon the next day that she understood Momma wasn't coming back.

* * *

"A small favor," Ganna said. "As a courtesy to one of our highest echelon."

"Our 'highest', Priestess?" the younger woman scoffed. "But Artemis was a common -- "

"No matter what she chose to do later in life, Diana, she was one of our own," Ganna said firmly. "And her child has a place here until other arrangements can be made."

_Arrangements._ She knew that word. She didn't like it.

"And is she to be a Companion, Mother Ganna?" Diana forced herself to keep a civil tongue.

"Of course not. Artemis came from an esteemed family, but that family is gone now. As I recall, she was the last of her name."

Diana found she could breathe again.

"But Artemis had a substansive dowry put aside for this little one. It will come to the House, if we take her in." Ganna peered down her nose at the scruffy girl. "The child may stay until she is sold, or until she can be of no longer use to us."

* * *

Everything was taken. Every rug, curtain, chair, and dish. Even the treasured Aurelian tiles that Momma said had reminded her of the ocean -- these were carefully pried off the floor and shipped off to some trader's vessel, adding a few more coins to the House coffers.

Perched on a flat stump in the outer court, she watched the funny bald men (eunuchs, Mother Ganna had called them) haul away her home, swinging her skinny legs where her feet did not quite reach the ground. Every few minutes she would check to make sure her face still showed a cautious disinterest.

"Your eyes and mouth are your worst enemies and your closest allies," Momma had told her, over and over again. "They carry the telltale signs of your mind and heart. Use them as you need. Don't let them use you."

Tucked away in her tunic was a keepsake she meant not to part with. If she showed fear -- if she showed her secret on her face -- she would lose it. Of its own accord her hand stole into her sleeve and lightly touched the bracelet, just to make sure it was still there. It was.

* * *

She stood in the Hall of Records, shifting her weight from one tired foot to the other, and swallowed a yawn. The recorder, a slender eunuch with heavy gold hoops hanging from his ears, read the report aloud as he noted it in the books.

"Gender, female. Height, 140 centimeters. Weight, twenty-three kilograms."

Diana smirked. "A little on the small side, isn't she, Mother Ganna?" The High Priestess showed no sign of having heard.

"Mother Sade Artemis, father unknown. Age 88 months -- younger than usual, but we have had younger still, as I recall. I have no name in the ledger, Priestess."

Mother Ganna turned her steel gaze on the girl sulking at her side. "Your name, child."

She shrugged.

A fleshy hand pinched her shoulder, in a grasp that was meant to appear helpful. Diana's voice was wheedy, needling. "The High Priestess requires the name of the girl we mean to take in, at quite a loss to ourselves, might I add. Won't you tell us, dear?"

Pushing the hair out of her eyes and brushing the hand off her shoulder as she would a bothersome insect, the girl shook her head.

Ganna sighed. "The child is stupid, or merely so unnecessary that no name was given to her. Write that down in the books. She will begin as a between girl, and we shall call her Tweeny, at least until something more suitable comes to mind."

The recorder frowned, but did as he was asked.

"Now if you would be so kind, Recorder," the High Priestess continued, "take Tweeny to her cell and then show her to Cook. She must learn her new duties as soon as possible so as not to be a nuisance."

The recorder stood, bowed low to Ganna, and offered the small girl his hand with a smile. She accepted both with a hint of wonder; nobody had given her so much as a kind glance since her arrival the day before.

* * *

He led her down long, dark corridors, touched by bits of sunlight streaming through tall, arched windows. The Halls were empty, but small, unmistakable sounds of life could be heard behind the many doors they passed. She squinted and tried to keep pace with the eunuch.

"She's not so bad, you know," he spoke suddenly, startling her. "Mother Ganna. She holds a lot of responsibility, that's all."

He wasn't looking at her. She wondered if he was speaking to himself.

"The High Priestess watches over all people in House Madrassa. Least to greatest, they are all her children to care for. She takes each task as a personal burden and counts it as her own, victory or no. Learn from her as we all do, little Tweeny."

"That's not my name."

"So," he said with an amused smile, "you _can_ speak."

She nodded. He stopped and knelt to her level, his face serious but not stern.

"I will give you some advice, little girl, and you would be wise to take it. That name you have? The one you were born with? Keep it close to you. Guard it as you would any treasure. The name you have now been given? See it for what it is -- a tool for this place, nothing more.

"My name is Samael," he said, rising to his feet, "but I am called Recorder."

As they continued on towards the kitchens, her fingers reached into her sleeve -- brushed the hidden bracelet, traced the five tiny letters engraved on the surface. Her mother's very first gift to her, and the only one she had left. It was her own name, and nobody else's.

No one would take that from her. No one.


	2. A Servant's Servant

The ovens, counters, and floors were liberally coated with dust and unidentifiable debris. Creatures skittered about on two, four, and eight legs – she bit back a scream with she felt _something_ nip at her ankle.

"No lef-dovers! No!"

A scowl, topped by a bushy grey mop of hair, squatted in one corner of the kitchen. Tanned skin stretched over long, thin bones as she unfolded herself to stand. The only spots on her body with any extra weight were a sagging pair of lumpy breasts and the bloated, distended mass of her stomach, covered with a greasy apron.

"Whad? Whaddya want?"

The girl – Tweeny, she was Tweeny here, she remembered – scrunched herself as small as possible behind Recorder's toga. He clucked his disapproval at her cowardice and gently pushed her toward the center of the room. "New one, Bella. A between girl. No training."

Dreary faded-blue eyes searched Tweeny from the top of her stringy hair to the tip of her dirt-caked toes. Bella's nose twitched. "Needs bath," she sniffed.

"I am certain you can arrange that easily enough."

Bella hefted an enormous pot on the stove and nodded. "You go now, yoo-nick. I take care."

Tweeny grabbed for Recorder's hand. He wouldn't leave her here... would he?

The eunuch patted her hand. "It will be fine, little one. Have faith. Do as you are told and make no trouble."

Her wide, frightened eyes watched him go.

* * *

"Too young! Always too young. To old Bella they give too young, not know nutting about nutting."

Tweeny kept her attention on the wash basin before her. She was supposed to be rubbing grease into the oversized cast iron pans, but her tiny hands wouldn't hold their weight for long. Twice now she had dropped the metal on the floor with a loud _clang!_ that threatened to pierce her eardrums.

"If you cannot hold pans, how you hold trays for between work?" Bella scolded.

Over the past year, she had learned much. How to sharpen Bella's collection of knives and cleavers. How to slice protein bars and vegetables into exact, equal pieces. How to crack an egg with one hand. How to test if something was too salty just by the smell. She learned the names and uses of every spice, seasoning and herb stocked in the larder. She scrubbed and polished and swept and brushed, folded towels and aprons, and tried to keep herself clean – the memory of boiling water that Bella had poured over her for a "bath" on her first day still stung.

Her next lessons were to prepare her for real "between work", like her namesake – how to balance heavy trays on her arms so that she could carry them from one hallway to the next. The trays weighed more than she did and the carrying exhausted her, but the thought of escaping from under the old hag's thumb urged her on.

"I can do better, Bella. I promise."

Bella snorted and returned to her cooking. "Forty-eight year I been here at stove. First I scrub, then I tween, then I cook. You do good, do better, you be here at stove in no time." She grinned, showing off all six of her rotting teeth. "You be apprentice for old Bella, yes? Like daughter?"

_They carry the first telltale signs of your mind and heart._

Smile. Beam. Sweetness. Pride. Warmth. "Like daughter."

She would not be beaten tonight.

* * *

"You didn't come last week," she accused Recorder, when he ducked his bald head into the larder where she slept.

Recorder took stock of kitchen inventory on a regular basis – more regular than necessary, he admitted to himself, but he worried so about the little girl.

"My apologies, miss," he bowed. "I was embarrassed that I had not found a suitable gift for your anniversary."

"Annie-whatie?"

"Anniversary. One year to the day since you first joined us at House Madrassa." He held out a closed fist. She opened it warily, keeping an eye on his expressionless face.

It was a chain of brown beads, with a red-and-gold pendant, exactly matching her secret bracelet. She clutched her wrist protectively, out of instinct. He placed the chain around her neck and held her chin up. "I come to give, not to take, little one," he said softly.

She reached up to feel the coolness of the pendant. Small leaves and flowers were etched into the metal.

"And I bring a gift for Bella as well. Something she asked for." It looked like little dolls were wrapped in the paper, but closer scrutiny proved them to be a gnarled white roots. "Its name is _He shou wo_, little Tweeny. Mr. He's Black Hair. A youth tonic."

"Black hair? But these are white!"

"The legend says that on a walk, old Mr. He found two trees growing together with their vines embracing. He dug up the roots of these odd trees and ate them. Within days his gray hair had returned to black, and he was thinking about embracing someone himself."

Tweeny giggled. "Old Bella wants to embrace someone? If I use them, will I want to embrace someone too?"

Recorder's face grew solemn. "You must not eat these, little one. In age _He shou wo_ may bring about youth. In youth it may bring about death. At the very least, an unpleasant case of diarrhea. Best not to even touch it."

Tweeny gulped. Carefully she rewrapped the roots and put the package in her apron pocket. "I'll see she gets it," she said.


	3. Guardian

Tweeny was awakened from dreamless slumber by the sound of stumbling.

Rising quickly to her feet on the cold stone floor of the House larder, she looked around for something she could use to protect herself. Knives? None in sight. No forks or cleavers, either. Gritting her teeth in frustration, she settled on a heavy can of Blue Sun Beans N' Franks ("Bringing Families Together Since 2450") and prepared to meet her intruder.

She squinted, letting her eyes adjust to the dark. Two tall silhouettes clung to each other and tiptoed past the breadbin. Tweeny heard nervous giggling from one, and shushing from the other. The pair reached the liquor cabinet lining one side of the kitchen wall, the one Cook cleaned out every week or so. She told Recorder it went into her stew.

"It's locked," Tweeny spoke into the darkness, "and besides that, it's probably empty."

Something fell to the floor with a heavy _thud!_ and rolled toward Tweeny. "Quiet! Do you want Cook to wake up?" It was a bio-torch; she switched it on and directed its light at the uninvited guests.

Two frightened faces, both female, both older than she. She found herself staring. Companions were known throughout the 'verse for their beauty and composure; even these young ones, while definitely not composed now, were certainly the most beautiful girls she had ever seen.

The redheaded one regained her wits first. "You are in so much trouble!" she whispered fiercely, drawing herself up to her full height. "What are you doing this far away from the dormitory? Mother Ganna will skin you alive for this."

"Nandi." The blonde girl, a bit older, held her friend's arm. "Nandi, I don't think she's a fledgling. Look at her clothes."

Tweeny suddenly felt very poor in her thin grey gown -- very poor, and very humiliated. She handed the bio-torch over. The urge to run back to the safety of the larder overwhelmed her, and she gave in to it almost immediately.

"Little girl?"

"Sheydra, what are you _doing_? Let's go!"

She made herself as small as possible behind the floursacks.

The older one appeared in the doorway. "Won't you come out? We're not going to hurt you."

Tweeny peeked out. The girl was smiling. Something about that smile reminded her of her mother, and she couldn't help but smile back.

"My name is Sheydra," the girl said. "This is my friend Nandi. We are sorry we frightened you."

Tweeny ducked further into the room. Sheydra looked confused for a moment, then understood. She quickly took off her cloak and wrapped it around Tweeny's shoulders, noticing her sudden flinch but choosing to ignore it for the time being. How thin this poor girl was! Could she possibly be living _here_?

Hesitantly, Tweeny stood up. "I wasn't frightened. Just startled."

The girl with the auburn hair cleared her throat.

"Oh, be quiet, Nandi!" Sheydra snapped. "Dorm checks aren't for another hour, you know that."

"Hmph," Nandi said. "Look who's suddenly become Miss Adventuresome."

* * *

"Don't you even have a bed of your own?" Sheydra asked, concern in her pretty blue eyes.

Tweeny nodded. "But Cook says that she needs me to sleep in the larder, to guard the food and make sure no one is stealing from the kitchens." She bit her lip.

Nandi laughed. "Guess that theory works, then." She had appointed herself Tweeny's hairbrusher, having snuck Sheydra's comb out from her nightgown pocket. "And what's to stop _you_ from stealing?"

"She takes inventory. Every morning. If something is missing, well, then she... she..."

Having already noticed the welts on their new friend's legs, neither girl said a word.

* * *

The next day Nandiri che Ren made a formal complaint to her dormitory leader.

"Really, Diana," Nandi said primly, "there are far too few servants in the House. It takes forever for them to fetch the smallest item, and by the time they reach the dining hall, dinner is usually cold."

"I hadn't noticed," the leader said, not looking up from her books.

"Not to mention the security around here is sorely lacking. Some planets have been having problems with rebels."

Diana scoffed. "Just on the Outer Rim, and whoever cared about Outer Rim planets? They will starve before they can muster up enough strength to fight."

"How do we know? How do we know there isn't a rebel outside our doors right now? And I am especially tired of the eunuchs. I do not like them in the dormitory, and I most certainly am uncomfortable with them there at night. Something has to change, or I must ask my father to transfer me from here."

Diana's look of surprise was extremely satisfying to Nandi. "That would be -- you wouldn't -- but our eunuchs are here specifically _because_ they do not desire! From the time they are children they are properly trained, taught to want nothing but to serve!"

"I would like a servant of my own," Nandi insisted. "A girl, if at all possible -- a young one, that I can 'properly train' for myself. See that it happens."

"I will try," Diana said. "But I don't know how Mother Ganna will feel about this!"

Nandi, knowing full well that her family's money would smooth over any ruffled feathers, hid a smirk and took her leave.


	4. Adversary

"Do you see them yet, Nandi?"

"Shh! I told you, when I see them I will let you know!"

On the other side of the podium, Tweeny spotted Recorder, ready with quill and book. He felt her gaze, found her hopping excitedly between Sheydra and Nandi, and winked at her. Boldly, she winked back.

They -- and all the rest of House Madrassa -- were waiting for the "fledglings", the new arrivals, who would begin their lives here in just a few more minutes. It would be the first time that Tweeny would meet girls her own age, and her anticipation refused to allow her to stand still.

"Are they there? Is the train here?"

"_No_, Tweeny. Settle down or I'll send you back to the dorms. You're drawing too much attention." Nandi glared suspiciously at the soldiers standing at the House entrance. The extra security this year was due to the War, which began not five months ago -- the rebellion hadn't reached this far into the Core, but the House was taking no chances.

Tweeny had been Nandi's personal "bodyguard" now for a little over a year. So far she hadn't been asked to do any actual fighting; it was understood between the two girls that Tweeny was more of a go-fer, and a prize possession of Nandi's. On occasion Nandi would "show off" Tweeny to the other girls by making her do silly things, like bring her brunch in the middle of a class. The instructors paid no attention to her. She was a pet, but she was learning not to mind too much.

"Nandi? Sheydra? Have the girls come?"

Nandi turned to scold, but the cry rising from the crowd stopped her. Sheydra smiled at Tweeny, and let her climb on her strong shoulders to get a better view.

The fledglings were young -- twelve and thirteen, she knew -- and looked absolutely terrified at their surroundings. They seemed unsure of where to step, and watched in wonder the proud and elegant ladies awaiting them at their new home. Eunuchs poured in from every side to gather bags and usher those too frightened to move. From a distance Tweeny saw a short, squat girl shove her way forward. "Nandiri che Ren?"

Nandi looked down. "Yes?"

The girl's exhaustion disappeared in a broad, enveloping smile of white, white teeth. An image of fangs flashed through Tweeny's mind.

"I am Barbara Chen Courtland," she announced, loud enough for those around to hear. "I believe my father, William Ferrous Courtland, knows your father."

Nandi raised an eyebrow. "Does he," she said, amused.

The smile grew wider, somehow. Tweeny seriously wondered if the girl's face might crack. "Yes! They have played _wei qi_ together many times. Lord che Ren is the better player, of course." Tweeny held back a sneer. Nandi's father was a sore subject for her, and using him to butter up was going to have the opposite effect. "I hope we can be equally good friends, my dear Lady Nandiri."

At this Tweeny couldn't help but snicker; the girl, still smiling, shot her a look of pure venom. Nandi had to work to hide her own grin. "Nandi. Everyone calls me Nandi."

"And you must call me Bibi." She bowed, so low that her forehead was in danger of scraping the ground. "We will see much more of each other, I hope?"

A whistle blew; Diana was calling the fledglings in to be introduced to Mother Ganna. Bibi bowed a few more times before joining the group.

"I hope she's wrong about seeing more of her."

"Hush, Tweeny. What a thing to say! You must give these girls a chance." Sheydra always believed in seeing the best in people.

Nandi shrugged. "There's certainly enough of 'em here this year. I'm sure we can avoid her if we put our minds to it. Can you see, Tweeny, if they're all off the train?"

Tweeny, still perched on Sheydra's shoulders, searched above the crowd for the boarding deck. "Looks like ... no, still one left. Here she comes." A mass of dark, almost black ringlets crowned the head of the last passenger, who looked from side to side before accepting the hand of a porter.

Nandi grabbed Sheydra's arm. "Oh, my God! Do you see what I see? Is that -- "

Sheydra nodded. "Inara Sera."

* * *

Nandi hunched over her wave screen -- the one she had so far kept hidden from room inspections -- and skimmed over old news feeds.

"I know I saw it somewhere ... Ah! Here it is! _Monren Sera, Prefect of Xian Wo, and wife Vetta proudly announce the imminent engagement of daughter Inara to Alphonse Bandi, son of Governor Talba Bandi. A celebration for the happy couple will be held sundown Wednesday._ Here's a photograph."

Tweeny stood on her tiptoes and peered in. "Yep, that's her all right. No mistaking."

"But what's she doing _here_?" Nandi insisted. "Trainees aren't allowed out of their House for the first year; so they're having the engagment party without her? And somehow I can't see a governor wanting her son _married_ to a Companion. That's two lifestyles entirely too busy to have any time alone. How would they ever give her grandchildren?"

Sheydra leaned over and shut the screen off. "It's really none of our business."

Nandi narrowed her eyes. "You can't fool me, Sheydra. I know you're just as interested in rotten dirty gossip as the rest of us."

"I'm trying to break that habit, you know." Sheydra blushed furiously.

* * *

A small sound woke Tweeny. _I've gotta learn to sleep deeper_, she groaned. Something was wrong.

The door was shut.

Stumbling to the light pad, she shaded her eyes when illumination flooded the room and opened the door to its normal halfway mark into the spare room on the other side. She turned the lights off and hopped back into her cot at the foot of Nandi's bed, pulling the covers up to her chin.

Creaking softly, the door pulled itself closed.

Tweeny sat up. _What the hell..._? Stepping quietly on the carpet, she pushed the door open again, and waited.

When the door moved to close, she grabbed the knob. "Gotcha!" She pushed it as hard as she could push, and received a satisfying "Oof!" for her efforts.

Tweeny peeked around the door and looked down. Sprawled on the floor, clutching her stomach, was Inara.

* * *

"I don't like closed doors!"

"Well, _I_ happen to like my privacy!"

The shouting woke Nandi, and most of the girls in Dormitory Five. "What is going on?" Diana demanded. "Do you have any idea what time it is?" She grabbed Tweeny's collar and lifted her a few inches off the ground. "Miss che Ren, I suggest that you get a leash for your dog!"

The other girls laughed. Tweeny fumed, but the struggle went out of her. When Diana released her nightgown she ran back to her cot and pulled the covers up over her head.

"My apologies, Madame Diana," she heard a soft voice say. "The door was open, and I simply tried to close it. I did not realize..."

"Tweeny is claustrophobic," Nandi explained. _No, don't tell HER! It's nobody's business but mine!_

More laughter. The soft voice continued, "I would like to request a change of dormitory, if that's possible."

"Not likely, Miss Sera," Diana said, "and certainly not tonight in any case. All right, all of you! Get back to your rooms!"

Footsteps ran; doors slammed. Diana's voice, low now and sinister, murmured, "Nandiri, if you can't control that little beast, she'll have to return to the kitchens. You know that."

"She'll be fine, Diana."

Tweeny peeked out from under her blanket. Diana left, closing the door firmly behind her with a last warning look. Nandi hung her head, sighed, and got into her own bed. "We'll just leave the lights on tonight, Tweeny," she said. "It'll be okay."

* * *

Nandi was uncharacteristically gentle with her for the next few days. For her part, Tweeny tried to avoid Diana and Inara, and was on her very best behavior. The door remained closed every evening, and the lights stayed on; Nandi purchased a little black mask to put over her eyes when she wanted to sleep.

Tweeny came in one afternoon when Nandi was still in worlds history class and could not stand a closed room one more minute. Steeling herself for the battle to come, she turned the knob, and threw open the door.

Inara's room was empty. The bed was impeccably made; corners straight and duvet even all around. Her pillows were fluffed and placed in neat rows along one side. Not a speck of dust or dirt anywhere. Only one thing was out of place: a book, turned upside-down on the floor next to Inara's desk.

She'll think someone has been in here, Tweeny thought, and moved closer. I'd better put it away.

The book was thick, with words Tweeny didn't recognize and a well-drawn illustration of a dancing girl on the front. Inside were drawings of faces: men, women, and children looking happy, or sad, or frightened, or excited. There were several copies of the same sketch on each page, with very slight differences in each, and notes scribbled in the margins. A bookmark fluttered to Tweeny's feet and made a loud thump as it hit --

-- no, that was a foot stomping behind her.

"What are you doing in my room?"

Tweeny, unable to think of a good reason, simply shrugged. "You weren't here." She leafed through a few more pages. "These drawings are good. Did you do them all?"

Inara snatched the book out of Tweeny's hands. "_Get out_."

* * *

For the rest of that week Tweeny waited for Nandi to give her a punishment for breaking into Inara's room, but nothing was ever said, and finally she had to admit to herself that perhaps her new neighbor was not all bad. Or perhaps Tweeny was just lucky.

"Tweeny, I have something to ask you."

Here it comes, she thought. "I only went in because --"

"I left my embroidery in Madame Yewel's class. Fetch it back for me."

Tweeny groaned. Madame Yewel had a rather embarassing admiration of broccoli, which naturally led to an even more embarassing tendency to break wind in her classroom. Worse than that, she hung fabric over all the windows; blocking the one path the stench could take out of the room.

"Now what were you saying, about going in somewhere?"

"Oh, that? Er, nothing," Tweeny said, all innocence.

* * *

Classes had ended for the day, and Madame Yewel had already returned to her cell by the time Tweeny reached the classroom.

Nandi sat in the back -- as she did in most of her classes -- and it took little time for Tweeny to locate the half-finished embroidery piece.

A red-headed dragon, Tweeny noticed drolly. How appropriate.

Footsteps warned her that she would not be alone in the room for long. She stuffed the sewing under her cloak.

"You!"

She looked up at Inara's surprised face. Just behind her, Bibi Courtland entered, two giggling comrades in tow. Bibi stopped short when she saw Tweeny.

"Look girls," Bibi cooed, smoothly stepping around Inara's skirts. "It's Nandi's pet poodle. Arf! Arf!"

The girls barked softly, laughing harder.

Bibi stood inches away from Tweeny's face. "It's one thing for you to stink up your mistress's dormitory, Poodle," she said in a low tone, "but now you're trespassing on my territory, and that demands payment." She looked Tweeny over. Tweeny hurriedly pushed Nandi's embroidery further under her arm. Her bracelet caught the warm light from the windows, and sparkled in the early dusk. "Ah!" Bibi said, grabbing Tweeny's arm before she could protest. "What's this, then?"

Tweeny pulled back, nearly tripping over a floormat.

"Leave her alone, Courtland," Inara said. "If she gets hurt you'll get us all in trouble."

Bibi pulled harder on Tweeny's elbow, bringing the two girls closer to each other. "Bee-BEE! Bee-BEE!" her friends chanted, delighted to be witness to the spectacle. Egged on by their cheers, Bibi gave the bracelet one good yank and grinned as it broke free of her adversary's wrist.

Tweeny watched dully as two gold chain links fell to the floor with soft tiny pings. She kept her eyes on them as she brought her hand back, rolled it tightly into a fist, and smashed it into Bibi's smug face.

It only took one punch. Bibi landed flat on her back.


End file.
